How to Download and Install WhatsApp

Last Updated: June 14, 2018 - 11:02 EDT

The first thing that you will want to do if you want to use WhatsApp is to actually download the program to your mobile phone and install it. For the purposes of this tutorial, we’ll be using a phone that runs the Android operating system. The process for an Apple iOS device (such as an iPhone) or Windows Phone will be slightly different, but not too much so.

If you can’t find WhatsApp on your phone’s default application store, visit this page on your phone’s web browser to download WhatsApp for any platform.

To download and install WhatsApp:

Turn on your mobile device and tap Play Store or App Store to launch it.

Search for “WhatsApp Messenger”.

Tap Install (or Get and then Install) beside the WhatsApp program.

Tap Accept to give the necessary device permissions to WhatsApp.

When WhatsApp finishes downloading, tap Open to launch it.

If you can figure out what to do from these short instructions, then great! If not, read on, and we’ll walk you through the process with extra details and screenshots of where to go.

Detailed instructions on how to download and install WhatsApp

Turn on your mobile phone. Find the Google Play / Play Store program (it will be called App Store on an iPhone) and tap it to open it.

Tap the search box near the top of the screen and use your virtual keyboard to type in “whatsapp”. A menu should drop down with some search suggestions; tap the one labelled WhatsApp Messenger.

You should be taken to a page with information about WhatsApp (and perhaps similar applications). Tap Install (or, on an iPhone, tap Get, and then tap Install).

On an Android device, you will be notified of what parts of your phone WhatsApp might need access to in order to function properly. Just tap Accept.

If you’re using an iOS device, you may be asked to log into your Apple Account before you go any further. Do so, or if you don’t have an Apple Account, click this link and follow the instructions in order to set one up.

Once WhatsApp has finished downloading, tap Open to launch it.

There! You now have WhatsApp downloaded and ready to use on your mobile phone. There’s just one more thing that you need to do to get started: check out our next tutorial that will show you how to create a WhatsApp account!